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MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Replacement flyhalf Willie Ripia kicked a penalty with four minutes remaining to give the Western Force a 27-24 win over the Melbourne Rebels in Super 15 rugby on Friday.
Rebels captain Stirling Mortlock scored a try six minutes from fulltime which tied the scores at 24-24 but the Wallabies veteran missed a sideline conversion which would have given the home side a two-point lead.
Ripia stepped up and, after kicking the conversion of a last-quarter try to starting flyhalf James Stannard, landed the goal that finally separated the teams.
The Force finished the season outside the playoffs but with five wins from 16 games while the Rebels ended their inaugural season with their ninth straight loss.
Stannard kicked three penalties to give the Force a 9-6 lead at halftime and another to put his team ahead 12-6 three minutes into the second spell.
Former England flyhalf Danny Cipriani landed two penalties in the first half, then two more in the second spell to lock the teams together at 12-12 after 52 minutes.
Winger David Smith, shortly to leave the Force to join the French club Toulon, scored the first try of the match after 61 minutes to give his team a 17-12 lead. The try was Smith's sixth of the season, accounting for a quarter of the 24 tries the Force have scored in 2011.
Stannard scored a try three minutes later that gave the Force a 24-12 lead and took his personal tally for the match to 17 points. Ripia added the conversion and the Force led by 12 with only 16 minutes remaining.
But the Rebels hit back, in front of a raucous home crowd, and scored tries through Adam Freier and Mortlock in the 64th and 74th minutes to tie the scores. Mortlock converted Freier's try but missed the sideline conversion of his own to leave the match in a stalemate that was broken by Ripia's late penalty.
"It was a tough one, I guess both teams trying to end the season on a high," Force captain David Pocock said.
"It was really close at the end there but I thought the guys showed really good composure and it was a great strike by Willie Ripia, too.
"The Rebels haven't won a lot of games but they've been real competitive and they've proven that tonight."
Friday's match was the last for Rebels coach Rod Macqueen, who is moving to a managerial position, and for former All Blacks prop Greg Somerville, who has announced his retirement.
"It was very disappointing but I guess we paid the price. Consistently we were a bit slow at the breakdown and that showed in turnovers," Mortlock said.
"That was the sort of spirit that we've showed throughout the season and it was really nice to have that again tonight. Unfortunately, we couldn't get a win to thank all our fans."
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Western Force 27 (David Smith, James Stannard tries; James Stannard 4 penalties; Willie Ripia conversion, penalty), Melbourne 24 (Adam Freier, Stirling Mortlock tries; Danny Cipriani 4 penalties; Mortlock conversion). HT: 9-6.
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Rebels captain Stirling Mortlock scored a try six minutes from fulltime which tied the scores at 24-24 but the Wallabies veteran missed a sideline conversion which would have given the home side a two-point lead.
Ripia stepped up and, after kicking the conversion of a last-quarter try to starting flyhalf James Stannard, landed the goal that finally separated the teams.
The Force finished the season outside the playoffs but with five wins from 16 games while the Rebels ended their inaugural season with their ninth straight loss.
Stannard kicked three penalties to give the Force a 9-6 lead at halftime and another to put his team ahead 12-6 three minutes into the second spell.
Former England flyhalf Danny Cipriani landed two penalties in the first half, then two more in the second spell to lock the teams together at 12-12 after 52 minutes.
Winger David Smith, shortly to leave the Force to join the French club Toulon, scored the first try of the match after 61 minutes to give his team a 17-12 lead. The try was Smith's sixth of the season, accounting for a quarter of the 24 tries the Force have scored in 2011.
Stannard scored a try three minutes later that gave the Force a 24-12 lead and took his personal tally for the match to 17 points. Ripia added the conversion and the Force led by 12 with only 16 minutes remaining.
But the Rebels hit back, in front of a raucous home crowd, and scored tries through Adam Freier and Mortlock in the 64th and 74th minutes to tie the scores. Mortlock converted Freier's try but missed the sideline conversion of his own to leave the match in a stalemate that was broken by Ripia's late penalty.
"It was a tough one, I guess both teams trying to end the season on a high," Force captain David Pocock said.
"It was really close at the end there but I thought the guys showed really good composure and it was a great strike by Willie Ripia, too.
"The Rebels haven't won a lot of games but they've been real competitive and they've proven that tonight."
Friday's match was the last for Rebels coach Rod Macqueen, who is moving to a managerial position, and for former All Blacks prop Greg Somerville, who has announced his retirement.
"It was very disappointing but I guess we paid the price. Consistently we were a bit slow at the breakdown and that showed in turnovers," Mortlock said.
"That was the sort of spirit that we've showed throughout the season and it was really nice to have that again tonight. Unfortunately, we couldn't get a win to thank all our fans."
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Western Force 27 (David Smith, James Stannard tries; James Stannard 4 penalties; Willie Ripia conversion, penalty), Melbourne 24 (Adam Freier, Stirling Mortlock tries; Danny Cipriani 4 penalties; Mortlock conversion). HT: 9-6.
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